Qantas Airways Limited, or simply Qantas, is the flag carrier of Australia, and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations in Australia and Oceania. A founding member of the Oneworld airline alliance, it is the only airline in the world that flies to all seven continents, with it operating flights to Africa, Antarctica, Asia, Europe, North America and South America from its hubs in Sydney, Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane. It also flies to over 60 domestic destinations across Australia.
Air New Zealand Limited is the flag carrier of New Zealand. Based in Auckland, the airline operates scheduled passenger flights to 20 domestic and 28 international destinations in 18 countries, primarily within the Pacific Rim. The airline has been a member of the Star Alliance since 1999.
Trans Australia Airlines (TAA), renamed Australian Airlines in 1986, was one of the two major Australian domestic airlines between its inception in 1946 and its merger with Qantas in September 1992. As a result of the "COBRA" project, the entire airline was rebranded Qantas about a year later with tickets stating in small print "Australian Airlines Limited trading as Qantas Airways Limited" until the adoption of a single Air Operator Certificate a few years later. At that point, the entire airline was officially renamed "Qantas Airways Limited" continuing the name and livery of the parent company with the only change being the change of by-line from "The Spirit of Australia" to "The Australian Airline" under the window line with the existing "Qantas" title appearing above.
Sydney Kingsford Smith Airport — colloquially Mascot Airport, Kingsford Smith Airport, or Sydney Airport — is an international airport serving Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 8 km (5.0 mi) south of the Sydney central business district, in the suburb of Mascot. Sydney Airport is the busiest airport in Oceania. It is the primary airport serving Sydney and is a primary hub for Qantas, as well as a secondary hub for Virgin Australia and Jetstar.
Melbourne Airport, known locally as Tullamarine Airport, is the main international airport serving the city of Melbourne, the capital of the Australian state of Victoria. It has Australia's second largest passenger traffic. The airport operates 24 hours a day and has on-site parking, shopping and dining. The airport opened in 1970 and replaced Essendon Airport. Melbourne Airport is the main and sole international airport serving Victoria.
Ansett Australia, originally Ansett Airways, was a major Australian airline group based in Melbourne, Victoria. The company operated domestically within Australia, and from the 1990s, to destinations in Asia. Following 65 years of operation, the airline went into administration in 2001 following a financial collapse and subsequent liquidation in 2002, subject to a deed of company arrangement. Ansett’s last flight touched down on 5 March 2002.
Virgin Australia is an Australian airline based in Brisbane. It is one of two active airlines to use the Virgin brand, as well as the larger by fleet size. It commenced services on 31 August 2000 as Virgin Blue, with two aircraft on a single route. It suddenly found itself becoming a major airline in Australia's domestic market after the collapse of Ansett Australia in September 2001. The airline's business model consists of the core features of a low-cost carrier, along with some elements of a full-service airline. As of June 2024, the airline serves 33 Australian destinations with its Boeing 737 MAX and Boeing 737 Next Generation fleets from its hubs in Brisbane, Melbourne, and Sydney.
Jetstar Airways Pty Ltd, trading as Jetstar, is an Australian low-cost airline headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Qantas, created in response to the threat posed by the airline Virgin Blue. Jetstar is part of Qantas' two-brand strategy of having Qantas Airways for the premium full-service market and Jetstar for the low-cost market. As of June 2015, Jetstar was carrying 8.5% of all passengers travelling in and out of Australia.
Gold Coast Airport is a domestic and international Australian airport located at the southern end of the Gold Coast and approximately 90 km (56 mi) south of Brisbane, within the South East Queensland agglomeration. The entrance to the airport is situated in the suburb of Bilinga near Coolangatta. The main runway itself cuts through the state borders of Queensland and New South Wales. During summer, these states are in two different time zones. The Gold Coast Airport operates on Queensland Time.
Tasman Empire Airways Limited (1940–1965), better known by its acronym TEAL, is the former name of Air New Zealand.
Sir Reginald Myles Ansett KBE was an Australian businessman and aviator. He was best known for founding Ansett Transport Industries, which owned one of Australia's two leading domestic airlines between 1957 and 2001. He also established a number of other business enterprises including Ansett Pioneer coachlines, Ansett Freight Express, Ansair coachbuilders, Gateway Hotels, Diners Club Australia, Biro Bic Australia and the ATV-0 television station in Melbourne and TVQ-0 in Brisbane which later became part of Network Ten. ATI also bought out Avis Rent a Car and had a 49% interest in Associated Securities Limited (ASL). In late 1979, mainly due to the collapse of ASL, Ansett lost control of the company to Peter Abeles of TNT and Rupert Murdoch of News Corporation who became joint managing directors.
MacRobertson Miller Airlines (MMA) was a Western Australian airline that operated between 1927 and 1993. It served a changing roster of destinations in Western Australia and the Northern Territory, concentrated on services between Perth and Darwin via towns in the Pilbara and Kimberley regions. After being purchased by Ansett Transport Industries in 1968, MMA grew to become Australia's third-largest airline. It gradually lost its independent identity under Ansett ownership, being eventually rebranded Ansett WA before being entirely subsumed into Ansett Australia in the early 1990s.
BackpackersXpress was a proposed airline to have been based in Melbourne, Australia. It was established in 2003 and sought to start a long-haul, low-fares operation using two dry-leased Boeing 747 aircraft. Proposed destinations included Delhi, Bangkok, Munich and Manchester. The company failed to gain regulatory approval for its proposed routes and did not take delivery of any aircraft. It shut down in 2005 before conducting any flights.
Virgin Australia Holdings Pty Limited is the holding company that owns and operates Virgin Australia and Virgin Australia Regional Airlines. It previously operated Pacific Blue Airlines, Tigerair Australia and joint-venture airline Polynesian Blue which were absorbed into Virgin Australia in December 2011. Its head office is located in South Bank, Brisbane. After being placed in administration in April 2020, it was purchased by Bain Capital in August 2020.
Tiger Airways Australia Pty Ltd, operating as Tigerair Australia, was an Australian low-cost airline. Founded by Tiger Airways Holdings, it commenced services in the domestic airline market on 23 November 2007 as Tiger Airways Australia. It later became a subsidiary of Virgin Australia Holdings. On 25 March 2020, Tigerair suspended all operations as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Following Virgin Australia Holdings going into voluntary administration and later sold, new owner Bain Capital confirmed the brand would be retired.
The history of Air New Zealand, the national carrier of New Zealand, began when the amalgamated East Coast Airways and Cook Strait Airways began operations in January 1936 as Union Airways of New Zealand, the country's first major airline. Union Airways was the sole New Zealand aviation partner in Tasman Empire Airways Limited (TEAL), which made its inaugural flight in 1940. The New Zealand Government bought full ownership of TEAL in 1961 and the airline was renamed Air New Zealand in 1965. New Zealand's domestic airline, National Airways Corporation (NAC), was merged with Air New Zealand in 1978. Air New Zealand was privatised in 1989 but in 2001 the New Zealand Government took up 80% ownership in return for injecting $885 million after the airline ran into financial difficulty. In November 2013, the National government sold down its share in Air New Zealand from 73% to 53% as part of its controversial asset sales programme.
Alan Joseph Joyce is an Irish-Australian businessman. He was the chief executive officer (CEO) of Qantas Airways Limited from 2008 until his resignation on September 5, 2023.
Virgin Australia Regional Airlines (VARA) is an Australian regional airline based in Perth, servicing key towns in the state of Western Australia. The airline also flies interstate to destinations such as Adelaide, Darwin, Melbourne and Alice Springs. Formerly known as Skywest, in April 2013 the airline was purchased by Virgin Australia Holdings as its new regional offshoot. On 21 April 2020, Virgin Australia Regional Airlines' parent company, Virgin Australia Holdings went into voluntary administration due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Butler Air Transport was an Australian airline founded by C. Arthur Butler to operate air transport primarily among New South Wales airports in Australia, from 1934 until 1959.
George Henry "Harry" Purvis, AFC was an Australian pioneer aviator, engineer, airline pilot, air-force pilot and author. He was the engineer responsible for maintenance of the famed Southern Cross aircraft. Purvis often flew as co-pilot with Sir Charles Kingsford Smith and was the last person to fly the Southern Cross. Purvis was co-pilot to P. G. Taylor on the first flight across the lower Pacific Ocean from Australia to South America, landing in Chile in 1951.
